New ford will help riders in the Dales

Posted 19 October 2011

Those putting on their riding helmets and exploring the Yorkshire Dales on horseback may enjoy an easier crossing over a stream that acts as a barrier across a bridleway.

A joint exercise involving local drystone wallers and the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority has led to the creation of a two-metre wide cobbled ford in Arkleside Gill, making it easier to pass through Coverdale.

Otley & Yorkshire Dales branch of the Dry Stone Walling Association spokesman John Heslegrave said: "Arkleside Gill is steeply-sided and crossed by a bridleway but riders of even the most athletic horses had found the boulder-strewn stream bed too hard-going for a safe crossing."

A cobbled crossing was a clear solution, he stated, but noted it was a new experience for members to be laying stones under water with a strong current running over them.

It is further good news for riders in the national park after the construction last year of Far Moor Bridge, a 53 ft-span crossing of the River Ribble near Selside built as part of the new Pennine Bridleway that has won two design awards.

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